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Singaporean developer Low Keng Huat Limited has reportedly sold a four-star hotel in downtown Ho Chi Minh City to an undisclosed investor for US$49 million.

The sale of Duxton Hotel Saigon on Nguyen Hue Street was confirmed by research company Savills Vietnam, news website VnExpress reported on Wednesday.

It was the fourth reported acquisitions in Vietnam's hotel industry this year.

Last month South Korean carrier Asiana Airlines reportedly sold a 50 percent stake in Kumho Asiana Plaza, a serviced apartment and hotel complex also in District 1, to Saigon Boulevard Holdings for $107.5 million. The buyer is a subsidiary of Singaporean developer Mapletree Investments Pte.

In April, Que Huong Liberty Corporation, which owns several hotels in HCMC, said it sold Novotel Saigon Centre, another four-star hotel in the downtown area, to a Vietnamese investor, reportedly for $46.7 million.

In Hanoi, local hotel company BRG Group has recently bought four-star hotel Sedona Suites Hanoi from Singapore's Keppel Land Vietnam at $31.5 million, local media reported.

Given Vietnam's increasing popularity among foreign tourists, Savills forecast the local hotel sector will see more mergers and acquisitions this year, according to VnExpress.

Official figures showed Vietnam's international arrivals rose 21.3 percent year-on-year to more than 4.7 million in the first six months.